Mid-sized Dothan Notebook Roundup: Dell, Gateway, and HP/Compaq

HP/Compaq NC6000: In the Field

Fan

The system fan cuts in and out depending on the CPU's heat, but even when it is on, it isn't very loud. It seems that due to the NC6000's overall larger footprint, HP can use a smaller and less powerful fan to accomplish the job. Just typing away, it is somewhat hard to hear the fan, for a couple of reasons: one, obviously being the noise of the keyboard buttons, and the other being the noise of the hard drive. The hum of the hard drive being accessed seems louder than the other two notebooks in this roundup, which falls in line with the notebook's specs (5400RPM vs 4200RPM). If you are just accounting for the CPU fan at mid-speed, it is more like a whirling whisper than anything else. So, HP definitely got this done right. Max fan speed only happens when the CPU goes to max load for a reasonable time, so the real noticeable fan noise cuts in for just a few seconds. If you are playing a DVD at mid-volume, you can hear the CPU fan speed barely, and if you are just doing some word processing, you won't reach the max setting.

Heat

This notebook seems to stay cooler than the other two notebooks. We attribute this to the notebook's overall larger footprint, which gives it more surface area to displace its heat emissions. Based on our use, the area that the hard drive occupies (upper-left quadrant) gets warmer than the adjacent area (upper-right quadrant), which is where the GPU and CPU are located.

Keyboard

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The tactile feedback is better than the Dell's D600 and Gateway's 320XL, in our opinion, but it isn't quite up to the same quality as those that we see on IBM's ThinkPad line. Overall, it still is better than probably about 75% of the other notebooks on the market in terms of keyboard quality, and it is better than the average business notebook.

The control key and function key are located in the correct spot: control key at the bottom left corner with the function key to the right of it. Like Dell, HP has dedicated page up, page down, home, and end keys, which are located in the upper right hand corner of the keyboard. There is no combination of function key + another key to turn on and off WiFi/Bluetooth. Instead, this button is located as a function button above the keyboard. There is also a lock button, which just logs you out, and a presentation key, which can switch back and forth between specific resolutions. This is definitely a plus for those who need to carry their notebook to meetings and hook it up to the company projector.

TouchPad & Buttons

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The touchpad is just what we expect in a high end business notebook, good texture with a mid-level feedback. High sensitivity is not necessarily something we have gotten use to. Though, some people do prefer the D600 for specifically this reason.

One of the previous aspects of Compaq's Presario business notebooks have been their curvature buttons, as well as touchpad. The NC6000 follows suit in a similar manner. The buttons, though, are not as curved. In our opinion, the NC6000 got the proportions and curvature just right. However, we should note that some have suggested that HP increase the size and the touchpad.

We definitely like the addition of the pointer, which HP calls "PointStick". While a lot of people don't care for it, the option of having it there is something that we have found to be a benefit.